Mutatsimpundu Denyse seen in action at a previous world championship
Rwandan National Beach Volleyball team players have their eyes set on securing a slot to next year’s Commonwealth Games by ensuring an excellent finish at this year’s continental qualifiers which begins on Friday in Freetown in Sierra Leone.
Charlotte Nzayisenga (Rwanda Revenue Authority) and Denise Mutatsimpundu (APR Volleyball Club) who left for Monrovia on Wednesday are representing Rwanda at the tournament seeking the only female slot allocated for Africa in an event that has attracted 18 African nations.
With Beach Volleyball set to make its debut in the 2018 Games, the pair who have had an ample training stint in Rubavu District are confident on securing the ticket to next year’s Commonwealth Games.
“We are confident and based on the intensive training combined with hard work and determination; I believe we are up to the task. We head into the weekend’s continental tournament with one thing on mind-winning every game and securing that ticket to the Commonwealth Games,” said Mutatsimpundu on Wednesday.
The pair have had gained enough experience needed to win the weekend’s tournament based on the performances attained in different continental and global events over the years.
In July this year, they took part in the FIVB Beach Volleyball World held in Vienna, Austria but never won any game and this was a month after they had clinched a historic CAVB Beach Volleyball African Nations Cup last month in Maputo, Mozambique.
In 2012, at the junior category, the pair won the CAVB Beach Volleyball Africa Championships, but failed to participate in the World Championships as hosts Canada denied them entry visas.
In the battle for a place in the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games due in April 2018, Rwanda will face off stiff competitions from other African representatives under the Commonwealth flag such as hosts Sierra Leone, Botswana, Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Seychelles, South Africa, Swaziland, Uganda, Tanzania and Zambia.
